Chapter Text
Thor awoke feeling rather cheerful on Friday morning. It was a glorious day out already, heralding the coming summer, and it put him in a good mood before he’d even made it outside. His father had left him a few rolls for his breakfast, and Thor ate them on his way, licking the stickiness from his fingers.
The weather seemed to have worked its magic on Loki as well, who greeted Thor with such a bright smile that Thor couldn’t help but taste it.
“You taste like skillingsboller,” Loki pointed out, and kissed Thor again.
“They are an excellent breakfast food,” Thor said happily.
“They’ll make you fat,” Loki teased and patted Thor’s stomach.
“It’s a small price to pay,” Thor said contentedly.
Loki laughed, and clasped his arm as they began to walk. The sky was blue from horizon to horizon, and the world seemed open, as if they could just float away.
“Seems a shame to waste a day like this on sitting inside school,” Loki mused, and Thor nearly tripped over his feet in shock.
“I’m sorry, did you just suggest that we skip school?” Thor said, faking a gasp.
“Shut up!” Loki said, and laughed. “I just think it’s too nice to stay indoors, that’s all.”
“That’s how I feel every day,” Thor said, not exactly untruthfully.
“What, even when it’s raining or snowing?”
Thor shrugged. “Yeah. Once you’re wet, you’re wet. It doesn’t matter after that.”
“Until the hypothermia kicks in.”
“You are no fun, you know that?”
*
The day passed in a lazy haze, with both teachers and students too buoyed by the weather and the end of the week to want to do anything too strenuous. Most teachers resorted to putting on documentaries, not all of them related to the subject in question. No one complained.
Thor spent most of the day looking out of the windows, itching somewhat to get outside and do something. He was really looking forward to helping out Mr Johnson that afternoon, even if all he was doing was shifting bags of soil. The prospect of manual labor had never seemed so inviting.
*
Lunch was pizza, and for once it was pretty good. He even got seconds, along with a disapproving look from Tash. He didn’t care.
“What are you guys doing this afternoon?” Clint asked everyone at once. He got a barrage of answers, everything from taekwondo (Tash) to studying (Bruce) to making out (Tony). Steve didn’t even look bothered. Thor was proud of him.
Loki elbowed him. “What about you?” he asked, right before taking an undignified bite of his pizza.
“Moving bags of soil.”
Given that Loki’s mouth was full of pizza, he had to answer with his eyes, which suddenly looked very confused.
“I promised to help Mr Johnson with shifting a load of them. He’s getting a bit on.”
Loki finally swallowed, and smiled. He still had sauce on his mouth, and Thor felt the sudden urge to lick it off. “That’s really nice of you,” he said, and had to go and wipe his mouth with a napkin. “I bet he’ll appreciate the help.”
Thor felt a little abashed and shrugged his shoulders to hide it. “It’s nothing,” he said, and took a giant gulp of soda. Loki hid his proud giggles in another bite of pizza.
*
Thor had to go home to get changed after school, so Loki came along for the walk. He blatantly eyed Thor as he paraded around his room half naked looking for a very specific t-shirt, which Loki had spotted hiding under a comic but kept to himself. Just for a little while longer, anyway. It was disappointing when Thor found it.
Frigga plied them with sandwiches and juice before letting them leave, apparently just as proud of Thor as Loki had been at lunch. It was all very embarrassing and Thor was happy to get back outside. If he’d known volunteering for the job brought him on par with Mother Teresa he would never have brought it up in the first place.
Loki left him at the Johnson’s house, needing to get home. “Wanna try Skype later?” he suggested to Thor, who wasn’t sure if the day could get any better.
“Maybe,” Thor said, and Loki pinched him. “Okay! When Briana is asleep?”
“Yup. Talk to you then. Have fun.” Loki kissed him goodbye and Thor unashamedly watched him walk away.
He found Mr Johnson around the back of the house, where organized chaos ruled. There were more bags of soil, along with bags of compost, mulch, and what looked like river stones. There were piles of lumber and pavers, at least 7 wheelbarrows, not all with wheels, and dozens upon dozens of empty gardening pots. Under a mesh cloth for shade were rows and rows of plants, some flowering and some not, and Thor didn’t know the name of a single one. Leaning against a wall were spades and shovels, rakes and hoes, brooms of every size and style. It was almost overwhelming.
He was waved over to a section of the yard that housed hoses and sprinklers, not all of them fit for purpose by the looks. Mr Johnson was trying to fix one with duct tape and a lot of swearing.
“Glad you could make it kid! Thanks for coming. I see you’re wearing old clothes, that’s the spirit. Grab a pair of gloves if you like. Saves your hands.”
There was a box of gloves in a shed, and Thor had to dig around for a while before he found an almost matching pair. They felt strange on his hands at first, but he got used to the feel. Mr Johnson abandoned his repair and found Thor a working wheelbarrow.
It wasn’t so bad. Thor learned quickly that too many bags on the wheelbarrow was false economy, because it took him longer to wheel the damn thing. Three became the magic number, and he found his groove quickly, enjoying the physical nature of the work as well as being outside.
Moira came out at some point, scolding her husband for putting Thor to work straight away instead of letting her know he’d arrived.
“If we’d done that, you’d still be inside talking to him woman!”
Moira scoffed. “Oh, I would’ve let him out at some point, old man!”
Mr Johnson just pointed his finger at her as if he’d won; it would have been more convincing if he hadn’t a row of duct tape pieces up his arm.
Thor laughed, and borrowed a spade to lean on as Moira thrust a glass of real lemonade at him.
“He pushes you too hard, you tell me, right?” Moira demanded, raising her eyebrows in the way that she always did.
“I promise,” Thor said, highly doubting the probability. He saluted her, and she laughed at him before leaving them a plate of cookies and the rest of the lemonade to fight over.
The afternoon passed quickly. Thor shifted all the bags to their rightful place, and then found himself bagging piles of mulch. When the sun started to lose its strength, he watered the plants all in their rows, and tried not to drown them.
By the time they were done, Thor was damp in the places he wasn’t covered in dirt and his body was aching pleasantly. He put his gloves away in a special nook so he could find them again, and kicked the dirt off the bottom of his boots.
Moira told him he was staying for dinner, and brought out steak sandwiches that happened to be the best he’d ever eaten. They sat at the outdoor table with cold beer and soda and watched the sun go down, and Thor was as content as he’d ever been.
*
He wandered home to find the house dark and empty, a note on the table from his mother saying his father was out to dinner and she’d gone to a friend’s for drinks. That usually meant neither of them would be home much before midnight, and both would usually roll in pleasantly drunk.
Thor chuckled and raided his mother’s not-so-secret chocolate stash under the sink. He crammed a handful into his mouth, pretty sure he’d earned it.
He ditched his clothes in the laundry and wandered upstairs in his boxers, not caring that not all the curtains had been pulled. Without his mother there to bang on the door and complain about the power bill he took the longest, hottest shower he’d ever had and enjoyed every second of it. His cock began to rise in interest partway through, but he ignored it in favor of what was coming later.
Burying himself in his gigantic towel, he left the bathroom to air out and dripped all over the carpet back to his room. Loki hadn’t texted him yet, so he sat at his desk and checked his emails and Reddit while he waited.
Loki didn’t bother with a text and called straight through. Thor accepted, every part of him pleased to see him again. Some parts more than others.
“Briana asleep?” he asked by way of greeting.
“Yup,” Loki said, swinging in his chair. “Out like a light. We’re the only ones in the house at the moment.”
“Really?” Thor asked, wondering if running to Loki’s was a good idea.
“Yes. And no funny thoughts, Mister. Our fathers are having dinner together and I am NOT risking having my dad come home while you’re here.”
Thor nodded. “Fair enough.” He’d forgotten that his dad had said he was meeting Laufey for dinner this week. He wasn’t sure what it said about him that his parents had a better social life than he did.
“So, how was it?” Loki asked, and it took Thor a moment to realize that Loki was talking about his afternoon.
“Oh! It was good. I enjoyed it.”
“You enjoyed shifting bags of soil around?” Loki asked a grin.
“Hey, don’t knock it until you’ve tried it!”
They chatted for a while, about random things and about school, and the test results they hadn’t gotten back yet. But as usual it devolved to sex, and Loki, the only one of them actually dressed, didn’t bother to leave his chair as he stripped. Thor watched him undress, that same rush of lust and love rolling over him, that feeling that he never got sick of.
Their cams were still pointed at their top halves, but Thor followed the movement as Loki pulled off his jeans and underwear, and wished he was there. Loki began to massage his chest and Thor encouraged him, wondering if Loki could stimulate his own milk using just his fingers.
The answer was apparently yes, and apparently Loki was quite practised at it. He licked the white liquid from his fingers, letting a few dribbles run down his chest, and Thor ached to be able to lick it off.
“Next time,” Loki said, and stimulated another flow from his left breast.
Thor groaned.
He dropped the damp towel onto the floor and settled deeper in his chair, rubbing a hand over his cock which had become very interested in the action. He licked a palm and began to fist himself slowly, squeezing his fist over the head to encourage precum.
“Tilt your cam, I can’t see you,” Loki said, and Thor manipulated it until it was right where Loki wanted it. He scooted back in his chair until more of him was visible, and Loki voiced his appreciation with a strangled moan.
“You too,” Thor said, quite eager to get his own eyeful. Loki played around with it until it was right, and Thor could see his cock, just as hard and wet as his own.
They encouraged each other for a while, rubbing their cocks in unison, and Thor told Loki exactly what he was going to do to him the next time they were alone. Loki added his own suggestions and Thor had to admire his imagination.
“Can I see all of you?” Thor asked, and Loki didn’t say anything, just tilted his seat back and hips up to rest his feet on the desk. Thor could see he’d put a towel underneath him and he could see why when Loki lubed his fingers and began to circle his hole.
He watched Loki finger himself, first with just one and then with two, his eyes closed and breath coming in shudders. Thor wished it was him making Loki feel so good, kneeling between his legs with two thick fingers inside him.
Loki’s cock lay abandoned against his stomach, drooling whenever Loki got it just right. Thor had to lay off his own cock lest he come too soon, and he gripped at his armrests instead.
“You got anything?” he asked, and Loki nodded and pulled his fingers out. They were dripping and he rubbed them on the towel before reaching for something out of sight.
“This one” - he held up the same red and gold vibrator that Thor had used on him before – “or this one?” It was pink, with realistic veins, and curved so it would hit Loki’s prostate.
“The second one,” Thor said hoarsely.
Loki seemed happy with his choice and lubed it up, tilting his pelvis even more to get the vibrator to his hole. It sunk in with a little pressure and Loki cried out in pleasure as he pushed it all the way in. Thor’s cock gave a leap and precum oozed down his shaft, but Thor knew that if he touched himself now he’d spill.
“This could be your cock you know,” Loki said, his voice shattered. He thrust the toy in and out, going a little deeper every time.
“Yeah,” Thor said, wondering why the fuck he hadn’t just gone over there anyway. With Loki’s parents out they could have done it anywhere, right by the front door if they wanted, or maybe with Loki pressed over the back of the couch. His cock gave another jump.
Loki moaned and went harder, pressing himself into the back of his seat.
“Tell me when you’re gonna cum, baby.” Loki was too far gone to do anything other than nod. “Feel good?” Another nod. Thor gave in and took hold of his cock, his other hand massaging his balls.
“I’m close,” Loki gasped after a minute or two, the hand that had been touching his breasts coming down to grasp his cock.
“Ok, tell me when,” Thor said, collecting every ounce of his willpower to hold out until he saw Loki cum.
“Oh god,” Loki, moaned, and held his toy still, deep inside him. “Now, now, Christ….”
He shuddered and came all over his stomach, thighs quivering and breath lost, his body taking its pleasure. Thor followed him and let go, riding the wave as his cock pumped into his fist.
They came down together, regained their breath, bodies still shaking.
“Oh fuck,” Loki moaned, and slid the toy out. He lay back in the chair with his legs still spread, his hole still open, just for Thor. “Fuck,” Loki muttered again. “I needed that,” he said, and giggled.
“Me too, baby,” Thor said. He made no move to clean himself up, and neither did Loki. They rested for a moment, grinning at each other through their screens. Loki’s finger was making patterns with the spend on his stomach, mixing it with the breastmilk that he hadn’t licked off. Thor had a sudden desire to try it.
Loki seemed to know what he was thinking and brought the finger to his mouth. He licked his finger slowly before making a face. “Not the best combination in the world.” Thor didn’t care, he still wanted to try it.
The drying cum on his fingers was sticky, so he cleaned himself with the baby wipes he’d bought himself for this exact purpose. Loki was using his towel, and wiped off his toy as well before returning it next to its friend.
“We should do this every night,” Loki mused, looking rather contented.
“Only if we can’t do it in person,” Thor pointed out, and Loki grinned and nodded.
“True. Ugh, I don’t think I can move right now.”
“Neither,” Thor admitted, feeling rather like the day had very suddenly caught up with him.
“Forgive me if I fall asleep,” Loki said, closing his eyes for a moment.
But he didn’t, and neither did Thor, though he felt close to it sometimes. They chatted for another hour or so, both of them still very much naked, but too tired to go again. Eventually Loki had to check up on Briana, and so they said their goodbyes and Loki promised to visit with the Johnsons tomorrow with Thor, as they had very firmly reminded Thor that evening that he had promised to bring Loki around. He was starting to think they liked Loki more than they liked him.
Thor signed off, and mustered the energy to have another quick shower before he fell into bed and slept like the dead.
*
Saturday dawned much the same as it had the day before. Thor gave himself the luxury of a sleep in before rolling out of bed at 10.30am or so, and promptly followed the smell of pancakes downstairs. His body ached, but it was a good ache, and the more he moved the more his body loosened. It may have taken him a little longer to get down the stairs, but he made it eventually.
“Good timing,” his mother said with a smile as she held out a plate covered with pancakes to him. “I don’t think your father is going to be able to eat all of his.”
For the first time Thor noticed his father, who sat at the table with his head in his hands. Every now and again he emitted a groan of despair, forced a mouthful of pancakes down, and went back to studying the table cloth.
“Your father went drinking,” his mother said, with what seemed to be no little glee. “And he lost!”
Odin gave his loudest groan at that and beckoned for more coffee.
Thor felt like regurgitating one of his father’s drinking lectures back at him, but thought better of it and settled for shrugging in sympathy. He wondered what Laufey was feeling like this morning.
He wolfed down his pancakes, answering his mother’s questions about how the afternoon had gone with his mouth nearly full. Apparently she was a touch hungover as well, because he’d never been able to get away with talking with his mouth full before.
She shooed him out of the house after breakfast, saying something about cleaning the kitchen, but Thor wasn’t stupid. He knew his mother’s idea of a hangover cure was Bloody Marys, and lots of them, and she was under the sincere belief that he hadn’t a clue.
Having better things to do, he happily left his parents to their tomato juice and celery.
*
At the Jenssen’s, Thor found Laufey in much the same state as his father.
“I don’t get it,” Thor whispered to Loki, “apparently my father lost and he looks just as bad!”
Loki smiled cheekily. “He probably chugged a boilermaker in victory.”
“And they lecture us about drinking!”
Farbauti was fussing over Laufey in much the same way Thor’s mom had been fussing over his father. The only thing they were missing was the Bloody Marys. Thor shook his head in bewilderment.
“Shall we go?” Loki asked, just as eager to get out of his father’s way as Thor had been. “Only I’ll have to bring Briana, if that’s ok. I don’t think I can leave her today.” Thor could only imagine how well her crying would go down with the headache Laufey was likely to be sporting right about now.
“Absolutely. I think you’ll make the Johnsons’ day, bringing her,” Thor said. “She’ll probably be more popular than either of us,” he added without a hint of irony, and Loki grinned.
*
They made their way leisurely to the Johnsons, Briana gurgling happily from the stroller. It had taken a while to pack it all, of course – they were better prepared than a Girl Guide.
Moira spotted them from three houses away and met them on the sidewalk, her smile wider than the Golden Gate Bridge. Her husband had been elbow deep in a bag of potting mix and nearly put his dirty arms around Thor before getting a smack from his wife.
Mr Johnson cleaned himself off at the outside tap and followed them all inside. Moira had gone all out for lunch and Thor’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head – there was homemade lemonade, potato salad with bacon, corn bread, coleslaw, pulled pork sandwiches, and blueberry pie with cream for afterwards.
“You two have to come around more often,” Mr Johnson said, and sat down rather happily. Moira was fussing over Briana and pretended not to hear. After asking Loki if she could hold her she carried her proudly around the kitchen, taking her to the backyard and showing her the new plants that Thor had so lovingly watered the night before. They could hear her cooing from the kitchen.
Loki had followed them out, ever the paranoid parent, but Thor and Mr Johnson had seen the backyard before. “Think we can at least get the plates ready, eh?” Mr Johnson said, and Thor heartily agreed.
“Oh you two,” Moira said, exasperated. She trundled back in with Briana, who was looking very pleased about something, Loki not far behind. “We don’t have to eat straight away, you know!”
“It’ll go cold!” Mr Johnson said, looking horrified.
Moira rolled her eyes and shared a look with Loki, who was doing a bad job of hiding a smile.
“Well,” she said, resigned, “I suppose there’s some truth to that.”
Thor and Mr Johnson took that to heart.
*
How they demolished all that food, Thor had no idea. His stomach was uncomfortably full but it wasn’t like he had to move, so he sighed with contentment and leaned back in his chair. It creaked ominously underneath him.
Loki heard it and snorted quietly. Thor snuck a hand under the table and squeezed his thigh, leaving it there to rub his fingers along the inside seam of Loki’s jeans. There was no risk of Loki’s chair giving way underneath him – despite what Loki thought, there really wasn’t a whole lot to him when he was turned sideways.
But no-one could resist Moira’s cooking, and Loki had cleared his plate with relish, having seconds of the potato salad. Of course, Thor had managed thirds. And maybe fourths.
Briana had dropped off to sleep in her stroller, the excitement apparently a little too much. Thor wondered if there was enough room for him to join her. The day was lazy and warm, and it wouldn’t be hard to nod off.
They lingered over the remains of the pie and the lemonade, talking around the table as the sun followed its course overhead until the worst of the heat faded. Briana awoke and demanded nourishment, and Loki took her into the bedroom to feed her.
Moira started the dishes and Thor stood to help, but she waved him back down into his seat. Mr Johnson leant conspiratorially close. “She can’t stand having other people in the kitchen. Doesn’t like things going in the wrong place. It’s fantastic.” He nodded sagely and drained his beer.
Thor laughed and had to drain his bottle in cover when Moira turned to see what was so funny.
After Briana was satisfied and Thor felt they’d imposed long enough, they thanked the Johnsons profusely, packed up and made their way outside into the sunshine. Moira wanted one last cuddle with Briana – who did not protest at all, despite it being the first time they’d met – and Mr Johnson insisted on one too, cheerfully wiping a snotty nose with a tissue he found in one of his pockets. Briana almost looked upset as they left.
“So….. where are we going?” Loki asked, when they made the sidewalk.
Thor hesitated. “That’s a good question. If we’re quiet, we can go to mine? It’s not far.”
“Quiet won’t be a problem,” Loki said, and yawned. “I need a nap.”
“You and me both,” Thor said, and led the way.
*
The house was quiet and still. His parents’ cars were in the garage, so they were home and probably sleeping. They couldn’t get the stroller upstairs so they headed for the den instead, where Briana promptly fell asleep in the stroller and Loki promptly fell asleep on the couch.
Thor followed not long afterward.
*
Thor woke first around 4, squashed under Loki who’d managed to smother him sometime during the afternoon. Briana was awake and playing quietly with a toy that was dangling from the stroller, murmuring happily to herself. Thor watched for a while until he realized he couldn’t feel his legs, and attempted to gently push Loki off him.
“What,” Loki mumbled into the seat cushions as he found himself divested of the comfortable mattress he’d been on only seconds earlier. “Thor…”
“I’m here,” Thor said, trying desperately to shake life back into his legs so he could stand up. “You were squashing me.”
“So…” Loki whined. “Ughhh.” He was silent for a few moments and Thor figured he’d gone back to sleep. “What time is it?”
Not quite asleep then. “Time for you to get up.” He could practically hear Loki pouting into the couch.
By the time Loki had dragged himself upright and made his hair presentable again, Thor had regained the use of his lower limbs. Briana had spotted them and was eager to get out of her stroller, so Loki put her on the floor and let her scoot around. She wasn’t very fast and didn’t get very far, but Thor watched like a hawk nonetheless while Loki visited the bathroom.
They watched ‘The Emperor’s New Groove’ on Netflix and were halfway through ‘The Road to El Dorado’ when Frigga came in to ply them with dinner in return for a little time with Briana. Thor thought it interesting that her previous reluctance for him to have anything to do with Loki and Briana apparently faded when said baby was in her company and cute as all hell.
Briana thought she was pretty awesome as well and cooed happily from her hip, smiling up at Frigga who cooed back and made baby noises all the way to the kitchen.
Thor sat back on the couch with a heavy sigh. “What?” Loki asked, still looking back down the hall towards the kitchen like the over protective mother he was.
“Briana took ages to like me, but she thinks Moira and my mom are awesome the moment she meets them. Why?!”
Loki looked at him strangely, before rolling his eyes and coming back over to flop down on the couch. “I don’t know. But she likes you now, isn’t that enough?”
Thor looked at him miserably.
Loki scoffed and laughed. “Are you that concerned about what a baby thinks about you?” he asked, his eyes twinkling. “That’s cute.”
“Well… it just seems unfair, that’s all!”
“Babies don’t do ‘fairness’, Thor. They are all about waking you up six times in one night and spewing on you and doing pretty gross things to their diapers. Briana doesn’t care about what you think about her, as long as she gets food and cuddles. But mostly food.”
Thor shrugged. “I know. I guess I just wished that she likes me more, you know? Is that sad?”
That made Loki smile. He leaned across and kissed Thor on the cheek. “Don’t stress about it, hmmm? She probably just felt more comfortable with them because they were more comfortable with her. They’ve had babies before, remember? One of them was you! But you don’t have that experience. You were kinda stiff with her at first because you didn’t know what to do or how to act. Of course she’d take a little longer to get used to you.”
“Was I really stiff?”
“Uh huh.”
“Oh. Well I suppose that makes sense.”
“Yes, it does. Now shut up and let’s cuddle while we can.”
*
Without a high chair, Briana spent most of dinner in her stroller and the rest on Loki’s lap. Frigga had made mashed carrot and parsnips for her, which apparently was delicious and she ate without getting it everywhere. Loki looked delighted – whether it was finding a new food that she loved or the fact that she hadn’t made a total mess, Thor wasn’t sure. Maybe it was both.
Odin hadn’t quite recovered from his hangover yet and sat glumly at the end of the table, his face still ruddy. Thor wasn’t even sure if he registered that Loki and Briana had joined them. They just let him be to wallow in his misery and his cottage pie.
*
The next morning, Thor was lying in bed trying not to drop his phone on his face (again) when Tash texted him to say she was 10 minutes away and closing in fast. He gaped at his phone and tried to remember when they’d made plans but came up short, leaving him with the idea that he was finally beginning to lose his memory. Perhaps it was better to just die young than drag everything out anyway, he mused, and dropped his phone on his face.
By the time she was at the door, looking perfectly composed and put together, Thor had dragged his hair into a ponytail and found a pair of jeans that may or may not have been clean. She looked unimpressed.
“I, um, good morning?” Thor said, as she ducked around him without saying a thing and pillaged a bottle of water from the fridge.
“Good morning,” she said succinctly, and drained half the bottle.
Thor stared at her. She stared back. “So I thought we could hang,” she said, and finished the bottle. “Or do you and Loverboy have plans?”
They didn’t, but he almost felt like saying they did just to see what she’d do. Invite herself along, most probably. “No plans, not yet.”
“Mmm. Good. Wanna do something?”
“Like what?” Thor was sick of standing around like an idiot and sat at the table.
“No idea. Go for a walk. Go eat. Go spy on Tony and Steve while they make out and paint each other’s toenails. Take your pick.”
“Food. Walk and food. Eat.”
“Okay, Caveman Thor. Food it is.”
*
The walk woke him up a bit, at least. And there was food at the end of it, which was nice. He followed Tash down the sidewalk, not even sure where they were going, but hoping the food would be good.
“Oh, look where we are,” Tash said and stopped dead still so Thor banged into the back of her. “What a coincidence,” she said, in a tone that suggested that this was not a coincidence at all. Sneaky bitch.
“Tash? Why are we at Loki’s house?”
“Why indeed. Let’s go see if he’s home, eh?”
Tash started to cross the street about the same time that Thor’s wits caught up to him. “Tash, stop.”
“What?” she said, looking back at him, a little breathless.
“Why did we come here?”
Tash shrugged. “He’s your boyfriend, right? Thought he might like to eat with us, that’s all.”
Thor hadn’t known Tash for years only to take that at face value. “Tash, why are we really here?” he asked, a bad feeling starting to settle in his stomach like a bad thing. This wasn’t a feeling he normally got around Tash.
For her part, she looked a little contrite. “Ok, maybe that was bad of me.”
“You don’t say,” Thor said dryly. “Spill.”
Tash sighed. “I’m sorry. I may have had an ulterior motive, and I went about it the wrong way.”
Thor knew exactly what she was talking about. “If you wanted to know, you could have asked,” he pointed out, a little sharply maybe. He felt a touch betrayed by Tash, especially considering he and Loki had already discussed telling her and all she had needed to be was patient.
“I know. But it’s really none of my business, is it?”
“No.”
“Shall we move on?” Tash asked, extending an olive branch. Thor was about to agree when the door to Loki’s house opened and he slipped out, looking confused.
“Why have you two been standing across the road for the past ten minutes?” he called across to them, arms raised in bewilderment.
“Um, coming to get you for lunch?”
*
5 minutes later, Loki was hand in hand with Thor as they headed down the street. Neither Thor nor Tash had mentioned her ulterior motive, and Loki didn’t seem to suspect anything, and Thor tried to forget it. He’d kill Tash later, in private. Or try to.
They ate at a little café off the main street, talking about school and their teachers and Steve and Tony because they weren’t there to get mad at them for talking shit. Tash outlined her latest conspiracy theory, the kind that usually ends up being true in the end, and Thor asked her about her latest plans for world domination, which were, as usual, Thor, not up for discussion.
However, Loki was not to be deterred. “So, what’s up?” he asked when he’d finished his sandwich. He crossed his arms and sat back in his seat and Thor knew there was no getting out of this one.
“Tash was being nosy,” he said, ignoring her splutter. Loki looked at him, and and then at Tash, and back to Thor again. Thor knew that Loki knew that Tash knew, and the whole thing was getting a little ridiculous.
“It’s up to you,” he said to Loki, and Tash sat up a little in her chair.
“If you don’t wanna say anything, that’s fine,” she said. “I’m happy with pretending I don’t know anything.”
Thor knew she wasn’t, but kept his mouth shut.
Loki, however, had already made his mind up. “Not here,” he said, and it was their cue to leave.
*
Thor paid for Loki’s lunch, because it was all a little unplanned and Loki’s wallet was still at home. They walked back to Loki’s slowly, and detoured into the park. Loki seemed attached to their willow and led the way under its leafy branches. They flopped down next to each other under the shade, nobody quite knowing who was going to speak first.
Thor had just made up this mind to break the awkward silence when Loki spoke first.
“So, Tash, what is it that you think you know?” They were still playing, all of them, but Thor could see what Loki was doing. Make her put it all out there. It was the least she could do.
Tash, for her part, didn’t really look fazed. She shrugged. “I think Briana is your daughter,” she said. “You’re her mom.”
Tash and Loki stared at each other for a bit, and Thor wondered if he was going to have to break up a cat fight. But, eventually, Loki nodded. “I am.” He didn’t look away, and Thor was proud of him.
“That’s cool,” Tash said, and broke the stalement by deferring and turning away for a second. “She’s cute.”
“Thank you,” Loki said, with no little pride in his voice.
“I won’t tell anyone,” she said. “I haven’t even told Clint.”
“You guessed,” Loki pointed out.
“Yeah, but everyone else is either too dumb or too wrapped up in their own shit to notice,” she said honestly. “But I don’t think any of them would mind, even if they knew. I’m assuming we aren’t telling?”
“Not yet,” Loki said after a pause. “Just us.”
“Fine by me,” Tash said, and smiled. “Congrats, by the way. She really is cute.”
And that was that.
*
Thor spent the rest of the afternoon at the Jenssen’s, helping Loki unpack the rest of the boxes that Maggie had dropped off. There were enough diapers to sink a ship, and packets of baby wipes, bottles of powder, things in jars that Thor didn’t understand, baby food, clothes, and some toys, which Loki presented to Briana one by one, as if to see if she appreciated them. A floppy little teddy bear caught her attention, and she wrapped her arms around it in pleasure and refused to let go. Loki just shrugged.
At some point, Loki sat down amongst the piles of diapers and sighed. “I don’t have much choice, do I?” he said, looking at Thor as if he had all the answers. Thor didn’t even have the question. He cocked his head in confusion.
“This money,” Loki said wearily. “I feel bad taking it, but I don’t think I have a choice. I can’t make my parents pay for everything for her forever, it’s my own fault I got knocked up.”
He looked miserable, so Thor crawled over to him and gathered him up in his arms. “It was an accident, Loki. These things happen.”
“Yeah, well, my thing was a pretty big thing in the end.” Loki pushed his face into Thor’s shoulder. “And it wasn’t just my life that was affected. I went and made a whole new one.”
Thor couldn’t find words for that and just hugged Loki tighter, rocking him gently. They didn’t speak for a few minutes, Thor just letting Loki work things out in his head. Eventually Loki sighed, a heavy one from the bottom of his stomach, and lifted his head, blinking slowly. He looked resigned. “I’m gonna tell Dad I’m going to take it. I’ll phone Maggie tomorrow.”
He was never going to say it out loud, because he knew that the decision he’d made still didn’t sit right with Loki, but Thor thought that he was making the right choice, taking it. Even if he didn’t use it right now, there was no telling what it might be useful for in the future. In a few years Briana would be going to kindergarten, then school. So many things to account for. One day, if she chose to, there might be college.
Loki didn’t say anything else, just turned back to his box and started pulling out baby wipes. Thor took the cue and reached for another box.
*
Thor wasn’t expecting it quite so soon, but the next day in Economics their teacher pulled out a pile of papers that looked suspiciously like the tests they’d taken last week. All at once his heart dropped into his stomach and the world narrowed to this moment, as if one piece of paper with his name on it in that pile held the rest of his life on its white face. He maybe sorta kind of stopped breathing as they were handed out, and then there it was, face down in front of him, the result of those hours of study and the sharp twist his academic life had taken.
He turned it over with shaking hands, not sure if he could bear a failure now, not sure if he had the constitution to keep trying if his very best hadn’t even been good enough. But there it was, a shiny black B+ at the top of the page, and a scribbled “well done” beneath it, and the world came roaring back into focus and he thought he was going to cry with it all.
He wasn’t sure if he’d ever been prouder.
Feeling a little ridiculous and brimming with happiness all at the same time, he waved it under Loki’s nose at lunch and then promptly decided it was a great idea to shove it under all the noses of everyone he could reach. Clint got hamburger on it, but even that couldn’t dull his mood.
“Proud of you,” Loki said to him, and gave him a kiss that really wasn’t suitable for a crowded high school cafeteria. Tony threw a fork at them.
*
Buoyed by his success, Thor bothered to do his homework that night, even making the effort to go over things that they’d already covered in class but that he hadn’t really understood. Loki had told him not to be afraid of Wikipedia, that on the whole it was an excellent resource for getting the gist of things, and that reading the entry on a new subject was a great way of making sure he was getting his head around a subject.
To his surprise and delight it worked, and even just by sticking to Wikipedia he found things were beginning to make sense, loose ends tied themselves together and perhaps he wasn’t as big an idiot as he’d assumed. He wasn’t trying to fool himself though, he knew perfectly well that one night on Wikipedia wasn’t going to raise his grades and he had miles of effort still to go.
Before he knew it, it was pushing 10.30pm and he was yawning every second sentence, his eyes watering. The house was quiet around him, his parents in bed, and he took the hint and stumbled into his own. He was barely awake long enough to send a goodnight text to Loki.
*
The rest of the week passed in much the same way. Thor put more effort into studying, and slowly but surely it was starting to pay off. He wasn’t as lost in his classes any more, which made them easier to follow, which meant he picked things up quicker, and homework wasn’t as hard. Loki even helped him put together a study guide, covering the things he would need to know for his SATs, and how to get there.
They spent afternoons together when they could, and some evenings when they got lucky. Their parents were catching on that maybe they really were studying, and not just fooling around (although that happened on the odd occasion, not that either of them minded) and that made it easier for them to get together.
Loki passed his Classics test with flying colors (not that anyone had any doubts) and Thor reminded him about the promise that he’d made, that if Thor passed his Economics test he could do anything he liked to Loki. Loki, for his part, did not look worried, and suggested they wait until the weekend, to give themselves more time.
Thor didn’t object.
Their friends were the same, still rowdy and weird, and if Loki or Thor thought Tash would spill now that she knew about Briana, they would have been wrong. Tash was tough, and a bit crazy, but she was loyal, and it became their little secret, something just the three of them shared. Eventually it would be all of them in on it, but that was Loki’s decision and he wasn’t quite ready.
And that was fine.